Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-08-26
! tient lay close to the street, he could be
seen and heard from the buggy.


out from where boisterous, breZen-
luRged msn was declaring that he knew
mis- head was going to burst open, and
that die he would, in spite Of any and all
endeevors to save him.
"Well, yes" said the doctor. THAT
is, they once seemed strange; but human
nature is human nature the world over,
and when you learn it you know it and il
becomes common place. l presume
doctor sees the weakest and the strong
est, the best and the worst, the highest
sud the lowest, the most heroic and most
grovelling phases OF 1t. II you news
paper men could see and know half of the
hidden histories OF people you could
write books and books. We doctors pay
little need 10 it because it is to Us Sd every
day affair. The truth msy De withheld
even from confessOr but the doctor
must know all. Take the case of the mau
who was SO firmly convinced that his head
was going to burst-the one We Just left
who had towel full of pounded ice on
his head. He wouldn't for the world
have it known that he had brought it on
himself and that he was simply wearing
the crown placed upon him by his own in
discretions. His wife thinks it 8 touch
OF brain fever, resulting from overwork
and 1t is lust as we'll that she should.
The severe lesson he is learning now may
cause him to be more moderate in his
libatiOns in the future. He is SICK, | can
tell you. | know he is. learned that st
college, but not from the books or profess
sors. The cOlored girl | visited on the
other side OF the branch is another case,
but not an unusual one. She has misery
in her back, her old mother says. She
will be We'll and will probsbly
attend ball tonight. Such
complaints come usually on wash
ing days and are not dangerous.
Overeeting and overdrinking and i'm
prudence generally is what makes patients
for the doctors. There are some people,
and we we're to see one of this sort back
yonder where three little girls were; that
woman is simply dying Of starvation.
She works hard and is not properly nour-
ished. This Weakens her and renders
her susceptible to colds and other all
ments. What do l do for such? What
can do? Give her tonlc-somethiDg
to strengthen her. II it were possible to
prescribe beef steak and mutton chops |
would do so, but most people resent any
| interference with their detetiC affairs
| Then, there is custom. Some women get
! in the habit of being sick, and imagine
the week cannot roll around without 8
visit from doctor. We have TO take
| people as we ind them. We can only
cure the world and not reform it. Sim
! pie remedies for supplemented people
who persist in being sick, you know, said
the doctor, with knowing twinkle in his
eye.
"But don't you find plenty Of cases OF
real bona tide sickness?" asked the
scribe. "Consumption, heart disease
and organic ailments which doctors must
cure"
"MY dear sir, we find thousands; thou
sands OF them sir, but not the maIadies
named; one of which l may say is in
durable and the other mythical. Con-
sumption is oftentimes cured, but the
patient never knows it. BY change OF at
mosphere, diet, way Of living, and q
dozen-a score of other ways, consump-
ton in its incipiency is cured. When
ever it becomes so far advanced rs to
warn sufferer of its presence it cannot
! be cured. Judicious treatment, change,
and perfect and total abandonment OF
close rooms coupled with g life absolute
| ly in the open air will arrest the disease
and prOlong life, but cannot repair the
damage done. Heart disease?" and the
doctor laughed. "Heartidisesse is like the
Democratic party in Texas; it covers s
multitude of sins. Whenever q person
dies suddenly the doctor pronounces
1t heart disease. OF course every
death is accompanied by heart disease
and, when person is dead ne is dead,
and heart disease is as good a name for
it as any. No heart ever kept on pump
ing blood after It's owner died. Loss OF
speech, blindness and deafness also &C
company death, but we never hear of
people dying from these causes | was
struck some time ago by an answer made
by the great inventor, Edison, to some
one that asked him what was electricity
He replied, don't know. Had the same
question been put to the yerest neophyte
in the science, he would have made an
elaborate answer-the more elaborate,
the less he knew about it, Now, the
doctor, who can, without injuring him
self, come out fatty and acknowledge
that he don't know what ailment man
has died of, Is about as near the azure
tinted zenith of the professional flrma-
ment as any one ever gets. 1t would kill
young doctor to make such an admis-
sion, and cripple most any practitioner
Medical science is unlike all others In
this respect. The doctor must know
everything end-he usually does"
We had just turned up side street
shaving lamp post and compelling huge
stump-tail dog to change his bed, much
to his discontinue, when a man came
out OF neat cottage to meet US. His
clothing was rumpled and touseled, his
hair dry and unkempt zone end of his collar
tapped in idle liberty and his eyes were
red. He had haggard, tired took, but g
proud smile struggled with his features
lighting up his face as he spoke.
CHOW is everything?" said the doctor
"First rate; everything doing nicely II
said the wildeyed man, in 8 tone of sub
dued eXultation.
CHATS good" said the doctor, "send
for me if anything does not go right"
81 WILL" said the wild-eyed man as he
strobe somewhat majestically into his
house, blissfully Indifferent to the fact
that two white strings, not shoe strings
dsngled around his left foot.
"You have patients there also?" asked
the scribe, as he drove along.
"Y-yes," said the doctor evasively
"but everything is all right, and such